Calculus Textbook

Could anyone recommend a calculus text book? Preferably one that starts at the basics, i.e Leaving Cert level, and works right up to, and including, college level. One that would include a general understanding of most topics, and would give a nice bit of background information on what you're actually doing. Most importantly, it has to be the kind of book that can be read without the need for a teacher. And it may sound stupid, but preferably one without coloured pages and the like; for some reason I just prefer learning from dreary old black and white textbooks.

Thanks for any responses.

Thomas_S_Hunterson

Thomas' Calculus is very good.

It is in colour, but very comprehensive.

LeixlipRed

Yeh Thomas's Calculus is very good. And you'd pick up an old edition cheaply enough.

connie00

I started working my way through this book recently, sounds like you have similar goals as my self it certainly is coloured and fun and demonstrates practical applications. Its fairly basic I would think, but it suits my needs. You can browse some of the book on amazon or google books.

Calculus the Easy Way (Barron's Easy Way) (Paperback)
by Douglas A. Downing

Thanks for all your replies. Thomas' Calculus looks like a good option, and with 1400 pages it has to have a lot! It's pricey enough but I think I'll order it anyway, it'll probably come in useful in college.

Thanks again for your replies.

Michael Collins

Seen as you've mentioned price, check out this site. It is mainly 2nd hand stuff but it is supposed to be excellent, very good quality books in general. More often than not people buy books and sell them, without ever having used them! Or at least not used very much.

I agree with the general consensus on Thomas' Calculus being a good choice. There's plenty of other decent beginners ones in the same vane too...

www.abebooks.com

LeixlipRed

Don't get it first hand!! Way too expensive! Go for the previous edition before the current one. It's hardback as well so lasts longer and the differences between the two are very small.

pisslips

Calculus in one and several varibles

Salas Hille and Etgen

It covers absolutely everything and starts in a fundamental and logical way that a primary school kid could learn from.

Good luck getting to the end though.

Thanks again for all your replies. Oh, and thanks for the link to that site Michael_Collins. Yah I guess it's a bit stupid buying it new, I'll order a second hand one over the next few days!

Any books you'd recommend for getting started with linear algebra?

LeixlipRed

Eh, I'm going off memory here but I have one stored away somewhere, possibly called Elementary Linear Algebra by Anton & Rorres. Fairly sure that's the name. It's a very simply designed textbook which I always found decent. Though with linear algebra you wouldn't really need a textbook tbh. A bit of googling would get you through most topics.

LeixlipRed

LeixlipRed wrote: »

Eh, I'm going off memory here but I have one stored away somewhere, possibly called Elementary Linear Algebra by Anton & Rorres. Fairly sure that's the name. It's a very simply designed textbook which I always found decent. Though with linear algebra you wouldn't really need a textbook tbh. A bit of googling would get you through most topics.

Thanks for the fast reply. I'll look into that one. Yah, that's what I've been using for learning some calculus and linear algebra so far, that and ebooks. But, for some reason, I just don't think it's the same as having a book in front of you in your hands, well not for me anyway!

hivizman

LeixlipRed wrote: »

Eh, I'm going off memory here but I have one stored away somewhere, possibly called Elementary Linear Algebra by Anton & Rorres. Fairly sure that's the name. It's a very simply designed textbook which I always found decent. Though with linear algebra you wouldn't really need a textbook tbh. A bit of googling would get you through most topics.

Yes, Anton's Elementary Linear Algebra is a classic - I used it several editions ago (it's now on the 9th edition :eek:). Anton & Rorres is, I think, the 8th edition (and you can get a solutions manual to the 9th edition by Anton & Rorres that's almost as long as the main book). Just checked on Amazon, and the books are hideously expensive, so a second-hand copy of an earlier edition may be the way to go.

On calculus, a book I used to refer to a lot is Ken Binmore Calculus: Concepts and Methods, but it isn't an introductory book by any means.

LeixlipRed

I also forgot to mention that all college libraries would have tonnes of copies of old editions of these books lying around that would never be loaned out because they're not relevant to students (i.e. exercises/chapters in wrong place or ommitted) so if you know someone who is in college get them to get you a long term loan for an old edition.

Jay P

Engineering Mathematics by Stroud. Obviously it has advanced parts, but the integration parts are very good. I picked up the second book for €6 the other day in a second hand book shop, and I already had the first book at home.

KnifeWRENCH

I usually use "Calculus with Analytic Geometry" by Fraleigh. I don't own a copy because the library always has loads, but I've found it very good. We just finished a module in Multivariable Calculus before Christmas and all the lecturer's notes were from one chapter in that book.
I don't know what edition it is, but it has a brown cover, if that helps.

As for Linear Algebra, try Strang's textbooks "Introduction to Linear Algebra" and "Linear Algebra and it's Applications". They were recommended by our lecturer and I used one of them (can't remember which) and found it well written and useful.

Thanks for all your replies. I've picked up a few ebooks of your recommendations, so I'll use that to help me decide which to buy.

Thanks again.